Alternate Perceptions: The Black Mask War
by eye.of.the.dragonfly
Summary: A side of the Pokemon world you rarely see... Chapter 4 now up, and all the other chapters have been updated. He's not unconscious at the end of this chapter, I promise!
1. Chapter 1

ALTERNATE PERCEPTION: THE BLACK MASK WAR

Chapter 1:

My name is Gavin Marsh, if you care. I've seen what your world thinks of ours. I've seen the games, the TV shows, and all the rest. You think it's a perfect world. You think we go around all day catching Pokémon, and living in perfect harmony with one another. You think it'd be a nice place to live, right?

So would I, if it were actually true.

It may have been like that once. In reality, the Sevii Islands are far enough away to allow their residents near-ideal lives. The rest of the world has not been so lucky. Here, people use Pokémon for protection, rather than companionship. To have Pokémon is to have power, and if you catch enough, you could rule the world. That's what I'm here to tell you about, and I'll get to it later. But first, let me tell you a little about my life up to this point, and why it sucks just a bit more than anyone else's.

It's a cruel enough world to grow up in with decent parents. In fact, it would have been easier with any parents at all. You see, though their diplomas both read "scientist", my parents were more what you would call Pokémaniacs. They were obsessed with the damned creatures in nearly every way possible. They both got killed when I was eight, while studying Beedrill in Ilex Forest. They got all the way back to our house in Azalea Town before the poison finally killed them. That's one day I've always wished I could forget...

After that, I moved to live with my grandparents in Lavaridge Town in Hoenn. Aside from the Sevii archipelago, it was the most peaceful town in the world. It was also, as a retirement community, the most boring damn place I've ever been. That is, until Mt. Chimney erupted. When we came back after it was over, there was nothing left. We then migrated to Oza Island (or Three Island, as you know it). Or, rather, we would have, except for one slight problem: on a fuel stop in Kanto, the Seagallop 7 we had taken (the last one in service) got torn to shreds by an extremely pissed Gyarados. So we moved to Cerulean City, partly because it was near the sea, and partly because it was far, far, _far_ away from the volcano at Cinnabar.

And _that's_ when things went downhill. Cerulean got hit by gangs several times over the next few years, and, in the end, our house was among the few buildings left standing, though just barely. My grandparents then decided to move to my parents' old house in Azalea. The scientist who had been renting it for its extensive lab had met a fairly sticky end (that wasn't a figure of speech, by the way: it involved one _very_ pissed off Muk), and since the sleepy town had been fairly quiet for the past few years, they jumped at the chance. I was 17 then, and itching to be on my own. At least, that's what I _told_ them. The real reason? I don't think I could wake up every day, step outside, and see the spot where I had found my parents' bodies, covered in dried blood and giant welts. I think they knew, though, but they reluctantly let me stay. Anyway, the chances of being found by a gang were pretty slim, as Cerulean had been presumed deserted for some time, and some even rumored it to be haunted. I wasn't worried, and neither were the other ten or so residents remaining.

Then, all went to hell.

Yes, _then_. Not before. _Then_.

One day, a few months after my liberation, a gang called the Black Mask declared war on the Indigo Pokémon League, the ruling body of the country. Their headquarters of choice: the "abandoned" city of Cerulean. They moved in that night and decided to burn down the last few buildings. I remember that night all too well: the roars of Charizard and the howls of Arcanine drowning out the bloodcurdling screams of my neighbors as they were either burned by the fire Pokémon's flames or shot by the gang members' guns. As far as I knew, I was the only survivor.

After that, I ran. I just ran. I ran until I reached Saffron City. Now, _this_ city also had a reputation, but unlike Cerulean, the rumors about Saffron were true. Trust me. I know personally. Anyway, I looked around for some shelter (brushing my hair out of my eyes as I did so) and spotted the city's PokéMart. That is, what was left of it. In the burnt-out ruins I found a few Potions and Burn Heals, which turned out to work as well on me as they did on Pokémon, and some Pokémon food. It tasted like crap. Absolute crap. I remember telling myself that if I ever got a Pokémon (Ha! Fat chance!), I would never make it eat that stuff.

I cleared away a small space on the floor to sleep, then stepped out of the hollowed-out shell that was once a store, and gazed around at the destruction. That place always gave me the creeps, and it still does. All the fires had long since gone out, but there were a few spots that were still highly radioactive. Why? Trust me, you don't know even half the Pokémon that exist here, and you probably never will. Some are just too nasty to be watered down into little cartoon characters like the rest. There was also the matter of the old Gym. It just stood there ominously in the distance, looking very creepy as the sole building remaining in the city.

That Gym is why Saffron is said to be haunted. I never knew what they meant until I saw it with my own eyes. You see, the Black Mask didn't just declare war on the IPL overnight. The anarchist gang had been wreaking havoc for some time. Their biggest attack: every Gym in Kanto was utterly annihilated in one fell swoop. Burned, bombed, and otherwise demolished. The League was devastated, but maintained.

Then, something strange happened. Overnight, Saffron's Gym, which had been one of the most thoroughly razed, appeared back in its original place, perfectly restored. What's more, Mara, the Gym's leader, was seen inside through the locked doors. Her body had been found in the Gym's ruins a few days before. The Black Mask didn't know what in all hell had happened, but they stormed the city a few days later. They brought Fire types to burn, Rock types to demolish, and Atomic types to render the area uninhabitable for many years. They also brought guns. Lots and lots of guns. It was a massacre. But the horror wasn't over. A few days later, after all the bodies had been counted, the Gym reappeared again. The doors were unlocked. The rescue workers, who thought there might be survivors inside, ventured in. Pieces of them were found scattered around the area the next day. The doors were once again locked.

I shuddered involuntarily, and forced myself to look away from the evil building. Moving my tousled brown hair out of my eyes again, I returned to the shop to try to get some sleep. I don't really like my hair, but girls seem to, so I put up with it. When I walked through the charred doorframe, I found a few Great Balls lying partially hidden under some empty boxes. I stuck them in my pocket absentmindedly. I wasn't even thinking about where I would go the next day. I just curled up in the ruins of the old market.

Five minutes later, I threw up. Damn Pokémon food.

It was gonna be a long night...

NEXT TIME...

The creature looked at me murderously, and yet I knew in that moment that it was meant to be.

I must be crazy...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

I woke up the next morning and suddenly noticed two things: one, I had an incredible pain in my neck, and two, the Gym was about a mile closer than it was the day before.

Really, neither of those surprised me.

Why? Well, ever since the Saffron massacre, the abandoned old city had become steadily more haunted, probably because of all the bloodshed. Recently some more powerful Ghost Pokémon moved in and started moving buildings around, almost imperceptibly. I had seen this myself a few years back when we had first moved to Cerulean. I was out exploring north of the haunted city when I came upon a fairly high hill. I swear to God, I saw nearly the entire city's buildings up and moving, flying over, under, and around each other like a bunch of goddamn Pidgey in a windstorm.

Anyway, my neck was sore from sleeping on the hard ground, and the haunted Gym was _way_ too close to comfort. I quickly got up, almost threw up again, gathered my stuff, and ran the hell out of there, moving my hair out of my eyes as I went. I only said it hadn't surprised me, really. It also scared the hell out of me. Anyway, I ran. The only problem was, the Gym had other plans. As soon as I had left the building (the ruins of the building, that is), it started rising off the ground and flying toward me. If you think that sounds a bit stupid, just remember that this particular Gym was home to the ghost of a powerful and, judging from the incident with the rescue workers, very hungry psychic.

And I was her next target.

_Crap_.

I had gone only about two hundred feet when I tripped over a large cinder block. The knees of my favorite jeans tore as I hit the ground, but that was the least of my worries.

_Shit_.

The Gym touched down in front of me. Actually, "touched down" is kind of an understatement. It was really more like a cataclysmic crash that knocked down several of the nearby crumbling structures. I was scared enough then. So it didn't help when the haunted building started talking.

..._come to me...come...I must feed..._

I think that "scared shitless" would be a good description of how I felt at that point.

..._come...come to me...Gavin..._

Dear God, it knew my name.

Then, much against my will, I got up, and started toward the Gym. I swear, I put all I had into making my legs obey my brain, but it was no use. I was possessed. All I could do was wait. I had just enough strength to close my eyes.

"Gavin!"

I fell to the ground, instantly released from the spirit's hold, and feeling extremely confused. I didn't know anyone in the area anymore, as I'd assumed that I was the only survivor of the Cerulean raid. Turns out I was wrong. I turned quickly and saw the gaunt face and lean form of Mario Feldman, a veteran trainer who, in the four or five years I had lived in Cerulean, I had rarely ever seen. He was a recluse, even in the extreme conditions of the seaside ghost town, so I was surprised. Actually, I was shocked. The first thought to come into my head (after I had regained partial control of my mind) was "How the hell did he survive?". I mean, he _was_ a seasoned trainer, but he was _old_, not to mention the fact that he was severely scratched, horribly burnt, and bleeding heavily from is left wrist. Then it came to me. He used his Pokémon, of course. Then something else came to me. I wasn't sure that he had any Pokémon left with him.

If you're thinking that this is a hell of a lot of time to be sitting defenseless on the ground in front of a flying building inhabited by a murderous ghost, then you've never been possessed. I really couldn't do anything for a minute. By the time I got myself together again, Mario was already right next to me. I had no idea what he was doing, but he just screamed "RUN!" in my ear, almost deafening me, pulled me to my feet, and pushed me away. It was only then that it got through my fogged-up skull. But I just stared. I didn't actually believe he would do it. Suddenly, he stopped, turned around, and looked at me intently. Then I had one last revelation. He wasn't just bleeding. His entire left hand had been chopped off.

I almost threw up again.

He was still gazing at me oddly, as if an idea had just struck him, leaving him a bit dazed. He then reached into his pocket, and pulled out something small and round. He set it on the ground, and then turned to face the evil building and the malevolent spirit within.

..._come to me...I must feed...I MUST FEED..._

Without a word, he walked to the door, opened it, and walked calmly inside. I tried to call out to him, but I couldn't make a sound. _Crap_. I just stared blankly as the Gym slowly rose off the ground and drifted off toward its original foundations.

I really feel like I should have been a little more distressed at what just happened, but I was still extremely woozy. I started to wobble away, but I suddenly remembered the small object he had left on the ground. I bent down and picked it up. It was a PokéBall. I jammed it in my pocket, then set out for Vermilion. I thought that they might have built more ships small enough to dock in Sevii, and that's really the only place I wanted to go. I wanted to get away from Kanto as soon as possible.

After I had walked for about an hour, I fell down. It was only then that I realized I hadn't eaten anything I'd been able to keep down in more than a day. Add to that dehydration and a severe state of emotional distress, and I was not in very good shape.

_Shit_.

In my advanced state of...well, whatever I was in, I decided I would go ahead and take out Mario's Pokémon. Now, you have to realize that only nearing death, and with an extremely clouded head, would I ever even consider this. Don't get me wrong. I admire trainers, I really do. I've just never had any drive to be one, most likely because Pokémon had killed my parents. Even if I had nothing against the creatures at all, it would still feel wrong. It was Mario's Pokémon, after all, and it felt like I was invading his privacy. Still, it was my only choice. I had no idea what kind of Pokémon was in there, but I hoped it would be able to help me.

I called it out.

The Pokémon stretched out its wings as soon as I released it. It made small metallic clinking noises as it turned to face me.

A Skarmory. One of the rarest Pokémon in the world.

The creature looked at me murderously, and yet I knew in that moment that it was meant to be.

I must be crazy...

Before I had time to figure out what to do with the magnificent bird Pokémon, I passed out.

Cold.

NEXT TIME...

Boom.

_Crap._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

When I woke up, I met with a few surprises. First, I was alive, safe in a hospital bed, still in the clothes I'd been wearing for the past few days: my newly torn blue jeans and a red-and-black flame-patterned shirt. Second, Mario's Skarmory was sleeping on the bed next to mine. I was sure it would have flown off as soon as it got a chance, but there it was, head under its wing. I rolled over (which was a feat in itself, I was so weak) and took a look out the window, brushing my hair aside. I swore to myself that next chance I got, I'd cut it. Judging from the tall ships and flocks of gulls, I was in Vermilion City. Still confused about how I ended up there, I propped myself up into a cross-legged sitting position (another chore) and gazed at the armored bird on the adjacent bed. Its breathing was light and rhythmic, accompanied by soft clinking noises. For the first time, I noticed a collar around its neck, it's gray almost camouflaged against the dull iron color of its feathers. I wondered again why it was still with me. I couldn't think for long, because at that moment, a woman I took to be the nurse walked in, closely followed by a man who was probably the doctor.

There really are no such things as "Pokémon Centers." Honestly, I don't know where the hell they came up with some of this stuff. Anyway, what really exist are your typical human hospitals with extra services for Pokémon. You see, whatever power Pokémon use to battle each other (no, we don't know anything more about it than you do), it's effects are easily healed with Potions and the like, which is why the medicines in Saffron worked so well on my Pokémon-induced burns. However, if a Pokémon gets a broken leg or something, it takes just as long to heal as a human.

I noticed that both the doctor and the nurse were wearing small PokéBall-shaped badges on their uniforms, and vaguely wondered why I was being treated by Pokémon medics. The doctor saw that I was awake and whispered something to the nurse, who then walked out of the room. H couldn't have been more than a few years older than I was.

"I'm glad to see you're awake. Now we can finally treat your Skarmory." I must have looked confused (I certainly felt so), because he went on to explain, "He flew all the way here to get help, and then led us back. We think it's just a case of exhaustion, but he may have been attacked by something on the way. He wouldn't let us take him out of your room. That's one loyal Pokémon you've got there." _He? Oh. Duh. Pokémon have genders, of course._ As he spoke, the Skarmory woke up and stretched its wings. Seeing me awake, it flapped over to my bed and sat in my lap, looking up at me expectantly. I cautiously reached down and scratched his neck. I then remembered the collar. I turned it around and read the name engraved on it: Daggerwing. Interesting.

"It– I mean, he...led you to me?"

"Yes. You seem surprised."

"Hmm, never mind." I couldn't believe it. When I had first let it out, he almost looked like he had wanted to eat me. How much could he have changed in...? "Uh, how long have I been asleep?"

"Judging by how long it took us to get to you, and assuming your Pokémon left right away, I'd say about, oh, five or six hours. By the way, what's your name?"

"Gavin Marsh." Six hours? It had felt more like a few days. I continued scratching Daggerwing absentmindedly.

He scribbled down my name on a form and then handed it to me. "I'm Ryan Anton, the resident Pokémon medic. Can you sign this for me?" I took the release form and signed it. Ryan continued, "You'll probably be fine once you eat something and get some water in you."

I then realized how damn hungry I was. "Speaking of which..."

"There's a restaurant right down the street. You think you're up to it?"

"Yeah, I think so." I swung my feet over the side of the bed, Daggerwing squawking a bit at being displaced. "Sorry." I got to my feet slowly, and found I could stand easily. I was already feeling stronger.

Ryan stood up as well. "If you'll let us take your Pokémon to the treatment room now..."

"Sure, go ahead. Daggerwing, go with the doctor. I'll be back soon." To my surprise, the Skarmory flapped to the ground and hobbled over to Ryan, who picked him up and carried him out of the room. Still trying to figure out why that damn bird was being so loyal to me, I walked out into the hall and out the revolving door. I asked someone where the restaurant was, and headed off in that general direction. I found it easily, strolled in, and sat down. I swear, I must have ordered half the damn menu. As I stuffed my face with tasty food, I noticed something weird: aside from the staff, the restaurant was completely empty. In fact, the person I had asked directions from was the only person out on the streets. _What the hell is going on here?_ I thought it over as I devoured some fries.

"Gavin?" I looked up, a few half-eaten fries hang out of my mouth. It was Ryan. I tried to greet him, but all that I could manage was a muffled "Mmff." I swallowed with some effort as he sat down. "Enjoying yourself?"

"Yeah, I feel a lot better. What's up?"

"Your Skarmory's been healed. It's waiting at the hospital for you."

I thought for a moment, then asked him, "Why's the city so empty?" He sighed heavily, and I could see that he didn't want to tell me.

"Where did you come from?"

"I'm from Cerulean."

"So you must have come by way of Saffron." Smart. Very smart.

"Yes," I replied cautiously, not knowing where the conversation was headed.

"And _you're_ asking _me_ why no one's around?"

"What? People are too afraid?"

"Well, yes," he said, as if there was no other possibility. Come to think of it, there probably wasn't. "Aren't you?"

"Not with Saffron between us and them."

"You don't understand..." He gathered his thoughts for a moment, then continued. "The Black Mask has occupied Saffron as well as Cerulean. There's only a few of us medics left, even. I'm still here because the hospital needs to keep running. My sister – the nurse you saw earlier – and I are the only Pokémon medics left in the whole city."

"Why? The ghosts'll drive 'em out in a few days." I remembered the Gym and shuddered. "What's to worry about?"

"They've made a truce with Mara," he stated gravely.

It took a second for that to register. "_What?_"

"You heard me. I don't know how, but they did it. A League official came earlier today and confirmed it. They also announced a voluntary evacuation, which most people responded to immediately. After what happened in Cerulean, what else can you expect?" He stopped for a moment, and the door opened, admitting Ryan's sister, carrying Daggerwing in her arms. On seeing me, the bird flew out of her arms and onto the table. It started pecking at my fries as the nurse sat down.

"Hey, Gavin. My name's Lori." She was about 17; in other words, my age. And she didn't look half bad, either. She smiled at me sweetly. Ryan rolled his eyes.

"Any way," he continued, "the evacuation's expected to become mandatory by tomorrow, at the latest, though it could be within the next few hours."

"So, you're saying I should leave?"

"As soon as possible," he replied sternly. I don't think I'd ever seen anyone that young and that serious.

"Right then. I'm staying."

"_What?_" the siblings cried in unison, looks of absolute disbelief on their faces.

"I'm staying, at least until the mandatory evacuation. I've been through a lot lately, and I still need to rest for a while. Anyway, I've survived one of their attacks already, so why should I worry?"

Lori sighed. "What makes you think you'll be so lucky this time?"

I had no response to that, so I just stuffed more food in my mouth to buy time. After I had swallowed, I said, "Because I'm just lucky." Okay, so that was lame, but I had to say something.

Ryan glared at me. "Right. Just lucky, huh?"

"Yeah, so what?"

Ryan sighed even more heavily. "Well, I guess we can't stop you. After all, you're about as old as we are." He got up, Lori following suit. "Just come to the hospital if you need anything."

"I will." I turned back to my food as they started toward the door. They were almost out, however, when I remembered why I had set out for Vermilion in the first place. "Hey, Ryan?"

"Yeah?"

"Are there any ships going out to Sevii before the full evacuation?"

He frowned. "They all left yesterday. The only other port I know of that sails all the way out there is Olivine."

"Oh. Okay then." They left, and I worked on finishing my meal, or what was left of it (Daggerwing had obviously been as hungry as I had). When we were done, I paid and left the building, my new Pokémon in tow. I walked down to the shore and sat down on the sand. It was about an hour before sunset and the place was absolutely deserted. I lay down and closed my eyes, feeling content for the first time in days. I had almost drifted off to sleep when...

Boom.

_Crap._

NEXT TIME...

The horrible feel of a gun barrel against the back of my head was more than enough to make me cower. Add to that a knife against my throat and a few hundred violent Pokémon ready to attack at any moment. I was about to shit my pants.

"Give it up, or else."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

I sat bolt upright, then sprang to my feet, looking around for the source of the explosion. It didn't take long: smoke was pouring up from somewhere beyond the row of boardwalk buildings that blocked my view. My instinct to run momentarily clashed with my urge to investigate, but it was a short battle: no matter how much I wanted to believe it, I didn't think my incredible luck would hold out much longer.

"Come on, Daggerwing, we're gettin' outta here...Daggerwing?" The bird was nowhere in sight. After searching for a few minutes, I spotted him in the sky, flying into the rising smoke. _Crap._ I ran after him, sprinting through alleys and vaulting over trashcans. As I ran, I began to recognize more of the buildings that were flying by, and figured out where the smoke was coming from: the hospital.

My survival instinct now stepped aside to let through my ego-boosted heroism. If there was anyone stuck in that hospital, I was gonna help them out. I can't exactly say why, 'cause it's not something I would usually do. Something took over. Just when I got to the hospital, someone came stumbling out the revolving door. It was Lori.

"Gavin! Help us out!" Her usually serene face was now contorted with worry, fear and rage (though she was still pretty good-looking). She gestured frantically at the entrance, then ran back inside. I followed her in, squinting my eyes to keep out the thick black smoke. It was a nightmarish scene. The lobby was completely deserted, and the various potted plants were already reduced to ashes. Some of the treatment rooms, however, had been occupied. Many were invalids, and hadn't made it out in time. Others were staggering down the halls, helped along by the sparse hospital staff.

I was just beginning to wonder where Lori was leading me when she threw open a door to our right. This led into a small lab equipment room, which had apparently been devoid of smoke until now. She grabbed two pairs of goggles and a couple of facemasks from a bin and tossed one of each to me. I put them both on, and opened my eyes fully, glad for relief from the smoke-filled air. Without a word, she led me back out of the room and down a narrow corridor. We moved a lot faster after that. A thought hit me just as she was opening another door. Though it was deathly quiet in this part of the building, the oppressive ash and smoke made me shout to her, "Where's Ryan?" She turned her head and shot me a look I couldn't decipher, then opened the door.

_Holy crap!_ The walls of the small room were stacked with more PokéBalls than I had ever seen in my life. They were an oddly luminescent blue color, and slightly bigger than usual. A large machine with weird-looking internal chambers took up most of the room. Lori shut the door and said to me form behind her mask, "Okay, Gavin, I need some help with this. See all those PokéBalls?" I nodded, and she continued, "Most of them are empty, but all of them in this section have injured Pokémon in them." She pointed to a portion of the nearest wall packed with the glowing spheres. I noticed for the first time that some of the indicator lights were on, colored the same soft blue as the Balls themselves, instead of the usual red.

"Why are the lights blue?"

"Those are Heal Balls. They contain both a Pokémon and its PokéBall, which is why they're larger than normal. The lights turn red when the Pokémon's fully recovered. Now, help me transfer these Pokémon. They're going to the Indigo Hospital; they'll be safe there." I realized that the big machine must have been a transfer unit, used for virtualizing Pokémon and sending them wherever they're needed. Yes, we _can_ do that. You're just not advanced enough to understand it.

She picked up a Ball and pressed the actuator to one of several ports on the side of the machine. There was a flash of red light as the Injured creature's PokéBall appeared inside one of the chambers and disappeared. She tossed aside the empty Heal Ball and picked up a couple more. I followed suit, pressing the Balls against the ports as fast as I could. After about five minutes, I transferred the last one and followed Lori out the door. Or, rather, I slammed right into her back. She had stopped cold, and seemed to be listening intently.

..._so hungry..._

I then felt a chill that couldn't have been anything but supernatural, given the heat the fire was giving off. I froze, but Lori grabbed my wrist and dragged me forward. She led me downstairs (_led_ is kind of an understatement, _pulled_ is more like it) and out the front revolving door. I wondered what the hell had happened.

I t wasn't long until I found out.

I must feed...I MUST FEED...so hungry... 

_Shit._ _Now_ I recognized that...that voice, or whatever it was. It was Mara, the former Gym Leader of Saffron City. Apparently, the Black Mask _had_ negotiated a truce. Drenched in ghostly blood, she drifted closer to us, her dead gaze fixed intently on us. I couldn't move, I was so scared; my legs were like cement. Lori let out a small whimper. She stopped suddenly, and turned slowly around. There, just coming out of the door, was a doctor supporting one of the invalid patients, encouraging him to keep going. Lori suddenly found her voice, and screamed, "Look out!" The doctor looked up, and paled: Mara was now floating their way, all the time emitting her psychic message. He backed up slightly, and I finally registered that it was Ryan.

..._feed...hungry...come to me...COME TO ME..._

He stopped retreating and let the patient fall to the ground, moaning in pain. Ryan then walked forward slowly, entranced. I recognized those symptoms: he, like I'd been before, was possessed. In a split second, I regained control of my legs and ran full-tilt at the young doctor. I tackled him, almost breaking my leg in the process, but he snapped out of it. Mara was furious. She wheeled around in midair, those once lifeless eyes now glowing an angry red. The ghost dove first at me, then at Lori. Both of us dodged her, me only by inches, taking the initiative to drag the still-recovering Ryan out of her path. As Mara turned to attack me again, a sharp cry sounded above us. I watched in astonishment as Daggerwing, who I had completely forgotten about in the frenzy of the hospital scene, dove straight down at Mara. She stood her ground as the Skarmory initiated a Steel Wing attack. I was nervous: sure, a Steel attack'll hit a Ghost _Pokémon_, but I didn't know about an actual ghost.

Well, it worked.

Daggerwing's attack threw the specter to the ground. As the metallic hawk flew onto my shoulder, Mara hovered where she had landed for a moment, then vanished. Lori gave another small whimper, then regained enough control to wobble over to her brother, who was kneeling a few feet away trying to clear away the possession-induced mental fog. "Ryan, you okay?" she said tentatively, with a note of worry on her voice.

Ryan rubbed his eyes vigorously, trying to clear his vision. "Yeah...what the hell happened?" He looked around, more than a little dazed.

Lori seemed to have misplaced her voice again, so I stepped in. "You were helping someone out of the hospital when Mara attacked us," I related, then, noting his confusion, added, "the dead Saffron Gym Leader?" He nodded. "She possessed you."

"Ah. Well, that _would_ explain it then..." He stopped, and a look of panic spread across his face. "Oh, god, Mr. Randall!" I wondered who he was talking about, but before I could ask, he stood and rushed (well, limped) over to the hospital door. _Of course_, I thought, _the invalid_. Ryan knelt down and checked his pulse, then came up shaking his head solemnly. Damn Mara. I didn't really know what to say, so I kept my mouth shut as the siblings debated what to do next.

"Gavin and I've already transferred all the injured Pokémon. There's not much left to do, assuming that Mr. Randall was the last patient left in there."

"He was, and judging from Mara's fervor, the rest got away safely."

Mara actually smiled slightly at that. "Yeah, I guess so. But why did they attack the hospital?"

They went on like that for a while, mentally double-checking the hospital's evacuation, leaving me absentmindedly scratching Daggerwing's neck. Suddenly, I noticed two things: first, my Pokémon's collar was missing. Second, though Mara had most definitely made an appearance, I hadn't seen any sign of the Black Mask anywhere; at least, not yet. A chill ran down my spine as I realized what that meant. Ambush. Exactly like Cerulean. "Uh, guys...maybe we should leave," I muttered in what I hoped was a nearly inaudible whisper.

Ryan looked a bit puzzled. "Why," he replied, just as quietly, "is there something go—"

He was cut off then, because at that moment, the gang members revealed themselves. They had been hidden in plain view, utilizing the special camouflaging talents of the Pokémon known as Kecleon. In addition to the fifty-odd humans, there were several Pokémon out of their balls, and many more on standby. We were surrounded.

_Shit._

Then it got worse. There had been a few gang members behind us, all with guns, and a few with knives. The horrible feel of a gun barrel against the back of my head was more than enough to make me cower. Add to that a knife against my throat and a few hundred violent Pokémon ready to attack at any moment. I was about to shit my pants.

"Give it up, or else."

It took a second to find my voice, which had apparently been hiding somewhere in my stomach. I finally manage to stutter, "G-give what up?"

The Masker laughed , pressing his gun a bit harder against my skull. I felt blood on my neck where the knife was cutting into my skin. "You know what I'm talking about, punk-ass. Hand it over." He then figured out I had no idea what he was talking about, so he forcibly turned my head to face Daggerwing, who had flapped onto the ground at the first sign of danger. Loyal, my ass.

"_That_ is what we want. Now order it over to us before I kill you."

My mind had stopped working. I frantically searched for a way out...

NEXT TIME...

I tried not to listen to the sickening sound of his neck snapping...


End file.
